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CYBER CAFE: Judy Penz Sheluk

I’m delighted to welcome back fellow crime fiction author, Judy Penz Sheluk. Judy’s latest book, A Hole in One, has just been released by Barking Rain Press.

An Amazon international bestselling author, Judy is the author of two mystery series: The Glass Dolphin Mysteries (The Hanged Man’s Noose and A Hole In One) and The Marketville Mysteries (Skeletons In The Attic). Her short crime fiction has appeared in several collections, including Live Free or Tri. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she currently serves on the Board of Directors as the Regional Representative for Toronto/Southern Ontario.

Judy blogs regularly about her writing life as well as interviewing and showcasing the works of other authors. Check out Judy’s website and blog here.

Welcome, Judy! Do give us a sneak preview of A Hole in One.

Readers of The Hanged Man’s Noose will know that Arabella’s relationship with her ex-husband, Levon Larroquette, is complicated. It gets even more complicated in A Hole In One, especially once Levon is suspected of murder. Levon and Arabella meet in the Silent Auction room just before the charity golf tournament is set to begin…and before Arabella stumbles onto a corpse in the woods on the third hole.

A Hole in One is the second book in your series. What was easy to write? And what wasn’t?

You would think that the easiest part is that the world and main characters of my series are already created. In some ways, it is, but the tricky part is not giving away anything that happened in Book One, especially when those details have influenced the actions or lives of my characters. It’s a balancing act. Not to be too repetitive so earlier readers get bored, but repetitive enough so that the new book can be read out of order.

This is your fourth book. Does writing get easier or harder for you with each book?

It’s getting harder, and that, I think, is because I’m becoming a better writer, but with that, my inner editor has become quite harsh.That said,it took me 18 months to write and revise HANGMAN’S NOOSE, a year to write and revise SKELETONS IN THE ATTIC, and about nine months to write and revise A HOLE IN ONE once I got into it. So, I’m writing faster. Or maybe smarter.

I have another book coming out this fall, the sequel to Skeletons in the Attic, the first book in my Marketville series. Now I’m working on three books! Book Three in the Glass Dolphin series, Book Three in the Marketville series, and a standalone. The standalone is really calling to me right now. Maybe I just need a brief break from my series!

And you also blog regularly! You have been supporting fellow authors through New Release Mondays.

New Release Mondays has been well received by authors and my blog followers. My initial intent was to support other authors without me doing a lot of work (ha!ha!). It’s opened a lot of doors for me. Authors I’ve never met have been showcased on my blog, and many are willing to return the favor when I have a new release.

But what if someone does not reciprocate?

It’s disappointing when someone doesn’t share the post or respond to comments, but when that happens the author goes on my “naughty” list, meaning I won’t host them again. We absolutely have to support each other if we want to succeed.

You generously share your writing experiences through My Publishing Journey. What have proved to be the most popular topics?

The more raw and honest my posts are, the more people respond to them. My earliest posts on looking for an agent or publisher, and the rejection I faced, gained a lot of traction even though at the time I had very few followers.

Another series that did well was the one on Scrivener, a writing software program beloved by many authors. So beloved, in fact, that if you don’t like Scrivener, you start to wonder if there’s something wrong with you. For the record, I tried Scrivener and hated it. But that’s just me. I’ve been using Word since I started freelancing for magazines and newspapers in 2003, and it’s what I’m used to, and what works for me.

Most recently, I wrote a series of three posts on producing audiobooks. That’s been super popular with authors. I try for a mix of posts; some are geared to authors, some to readers

What’s next for you – in your spare time (ha!ha!)?

I’ve been on the Board of Directors at Crime Writers of Canada (CWC) since June 2017, and have just volunteered for another year, though as a general board member versus as Regional Rep for Toronto/Southern Ontario. It’s a lot of work, but I’m learning so much and I’m able to help other Canadian authors at the same time.

I’m also on the Committee for a new mystery conference, which will be held in Toronto in late May or early June 2020. Right now we’re in the initial planning stages, but we’ll have our venue and date firmed up by June 2018. The idea for a conference came up at a CWC board meeting and I thought, “I have to get in on the ground floor of this.” The hope is that the conference will promote Canadian authors, and that it will become an annual event. That, of course, will depend on how successful we are year one.

And finally, readers, here’s an extract from A Hole in One – just before Arabella finds the body!

Levon smiled, the full-on one he tended to keep in reserve, and Arabella felt something tug inside of her. She had heard quite enough about Gilly Germaine and how amazing she was. It wasn’t as if she was jealous, exactly, more like she felt Levon slipping away from her little by little. They might not be married any longer, but she never stopping thinking of him as a friend, someone who knew her and loved her, blemishes and all. Since Gilly had arrived on the scene, Levon had become more and more distant. This past month he’d been all but absent. Today was the first time they’d spoken in two weeks.

It didn’t help that she’d recently split up with Aaron Beecham. For a small town cop, he seemed to be on duty more than off.

“I should get going,” Levon said, interrupting her thoughts. “Gilly is relying on me.”

I’m sure she is. “I better get going as well. We’re starting on number two.”

“Just remember not to hit the ball until the shotgun sounds.”

“Gilly’s using an actual shotgun? I thought everyone used sirens or horns these days.”

Levon laughed. “Gilly’s as much of a stickler for research as you are. She thought it would be more authentic if she used a shotgun, too. You of all people should appreciate that, Arabella. After all, isn’t that your motto? Authenticity matters?”

It was, but Arabella didn’t like it that Gilly had adopted the same motto.

She didn’t like it one bit.

Find A Hole in One in trade paperback and eBook on Amazon and at Barking Rain Press here.